When to plant in Darien, GA
Planting dates worked out from Darien's own frost records, not a generic zone chart.
Safe to plant out
Mar 16
1 year in 10 has a later frost
Average last frost
Feb 22
about a 50% chance of a later one
Average first fall frost
Dec 15
1 year in 10 by Nov 20
Frost-free days
296
median, 1991–2020
Station used: Sapelo Is · 14.9 km away · station 3 m, town 9 m. How we match towns to stations
This season
Plan your garden.
Planting dates for common crops
| Crop | Start indoors | Plant out or sow | Harvest from |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tomato | Jan 19 – Feb 2 | Mar 16 – Mar 30 | May 10 |
| Sweet pepper | Jan 5 – Jan 19 | Mar 16 – Mar 30 | May 15 |
| Lettuce (leaf) | Dec 21 – Dec 28 | Jan 25 – Feb 8 | Mar 6 |
| Peas | — | Jan 11 – Feb 8 | Mar 7 |
| Bush beans | — | Mar 9 – Mar 30 | Apr 28 |
| Carrot | — | Feb 1 – Mar 15 | Apr 2 |
| Beet | — | Jan 25 – Mar 8 | Mar 16 |
| Potato | — | Feb 1 – Feb 22 | Apr 12 |
| Kale | Dec 14 – Dec 28 | Jan 25 – Feb 8 | Mar 9 |
| Broccoli | Dec 14 – Dec 28 | Jan 25 – Feb 15 | Mar 26 |
| Cucumber | Feb 16 – Feb 23 | Mar 16 – Mar 30 | May 5 |
| Summer squash and zucchini | Feb 16 – Feb 23 | Mar 16 – Mar 30 | Apr 30 |
| Winter squash | Feb 16 – Feb 23 | Mar 16 – Mar 30 | Jun 4 |
| Sweet corn | — | Mar 9 – Mar 30 | May 8 |
| Onion (from sets) | — | Jan 25 – Feb 15 | Apr 25 |
| Garlic | — | Dec 1 – Dec 29 (fall) | following summer |
| Spinach | — | Jan 11 – Feb 8 | Feb 18 |
| Basil | Feb 2 – Feb 16 | Mar 16 – Mar 30 | May 12 |
Darien's weather over time
How the growing season has shifted here, year by year, from the station's own records.
Each year's last spring frostLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Last spring frost |
|---|---|
| 1958 | Feb 22 |
| 1959 | Jan 24 |
| 1960 | Mar 8 |
| 1961 | Feb 4 |
| 1962 | Mar 7 |
| 1965 | Feb 26 |
| 1966 | Mar 8 |
| 1967 | Feb 26 |
| 1968 | Mar 5 |
| 1972 | Feb 21 |
| 1973 | Feb 17 |
| 1974 | Feb 27 |
| 1975 | Mar 3 |
| 1976 | Mar 18 |
| 1977 | Feb 21 |
| 1978 | Mar 5 |
| 1979 | Feb 20 |
| 1980 | Mar 4 |
| 1981 | Feb 12 |
| 1983 | Feb 9 |
| 1984 | Mar 10 |
| 1985 | Feb 16 |
| 1986 | Mar 23 |
| 1987 | Feb 10 |
| 1988 | Mar 17 |
| 1989 | Feb 26 |
| 1990 | Jan 27 |
| 1991 | Mar 10 |
| 1992 | Feb 9 |
| 1993 | Mar 16 |
| 1994 | Feb 4 |
| 1995 | Feb 10 |
| 1996 | Mar 12 |
| 1997 | Jan 19 |
| 1998 | Mar 13 |
| 2000 | Feb 7 |
| 2001 | Jan 26 |
| 2002 | Mar 5 |
| 2003 | Jan 28 |
| 2007 | Apr 8 |
| 2009 | Mar 4 |
| 2010 | Mar 6 |
| 2011 | Feb 13 |
| 2012 | Feb 14 |
| 2013 | Feb 18 |
| 2014 | Jan 30 |
| 2015 | Feb 21 |
| 2016 | Feb 10 |
| 2017 | Mar 16 |
| 2018 | Mar 15 |
| 2019 | Mar 7 |
| 2021 | Feb 4 |
| 2022 | Mar 13 |
| 2023 | Jan 16 |
| 2024 | Jan 21 |
| 2025 | Jan 25 |
| 2026 | Feb 24 |
Each year's frost-free daysLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Frost-free days |
|---|---|
| 1958 | 291 |
| 1959 | 308 |
| 1960 | 270 |
| 1965 | 277 |
| 1966 | 240 |
| 1967 | 299 |
| 1968 | 252 |
| 1972 | 283 |
| 1973 | 296 |
| 1974 | 279 |
| 1975 | 256 |
| 1976 | 232 |
| 1977 | 278 |
| 1978 | 280 |
| 1979 | 282 |
| 1980 | 268 |
| 1981 | 296 |
| 1983 | 301 |
| 1984 | 271 |
| 1985 | 301 |
| 1986 | 282 |
| 1987 | 274 |
| 1988 | 259 |
| 1989 | 280 |
| 1990 | 337 |
| 1991 | 259 |
| 1992 | 324 |
| 1993 | 270 |
| 1994 | 329 |
| 1995 | 275 |
| 1996 | 248 |
| 1997 | 321 |
| 1998 | 279 |
| 2000 | 287 |
| 2001 | 334 |
| 2002 | 296 |
| 2003 | 305 |
| 2009 | 301 |
| 2010 | 274 |
| 2011 | 320 |
| 2012 | 319 |
| 2013 | 282 |
| 2014 | 292 |
| 2015 | 312 |
| 2016 | 323 |
| 2017 | 289 |
| 2018 | 290 |
| 2019 | 298 |
| 2021 | 329 |
| 2022 | 284 |
| 2023 | 348 |
| 2024 | 319 |
| 2025 | 289 |
Each year's average temperature, April to SeptemberLong-term trend
See the data as a table
| Year | Growing-season temperature |
|---|---|
| 1958 | 24.9 °C |
| 1959 | 25.4 °C |
| 1960 | 25.1 °C |
| 1961 | 24.2 °C |
| 1965 | 24.5 °C |
| 1966 | 24.0 °C |
| 1967 | 23.9 °C |
| 1968 | 24.4 °C |
| 1972 | 24.3 °C |
| 1973 | 24.7 °C |
| 1974 | 24.2 °C |
| 1975 | 24.2 °C |
| 1976 | 23.7 °C |
| 1977 | 25.2 °C |
| 1978 | 24.9 °C |
| 1979 | 24.6 °C |
| 1980 | 25.1 °C |
| 1981 | 24.2 °C |
| 1982 | 24.5 °C |
| 1983 | 24.0 °C |
| 1986 | 25.2 °C |
| 1987 | 24.6 °C |
| 1988 | 24.3 °C |
| 1989 | 24.3 °C |
| 1990 | 25.3 °C |
| 1991 | 25.1 °C |
| 1992 | 23.6 °C |
| 1993 | 24.5 °C |
| 1994 | 24.2 °C |
| 1995 | 24.6 °C |
| 1996 | 24.8 °C |
| 1997 | 24.5 °C |
| 1998 | 26.0 °C |
| 2000 | 25.1 °C |
| 2001 | 25.0 °C |
| 2002 | 25.6 °C |
| 2003 | 25.0 °C |
| 2007 | 25.2 °C |
| 2009 | 25.6 °C |
| 2010 | 26.4 °C |
| 2011 | 26.2 °C |
| 2012 | 25.6 °C |
| 2013 | 25.3 °C |
| 2014 | 25.5 °C |
| 2015 | 26.1 °C |
| 2016 | 26.4 °C |
| 2017 | 26.0 °C |
| 2018 | 26.1 °C |
| 2019 | 26.4 °C |
| 2022 | 25.4 °C |
| 2023 | 24.9 °C |
| 2024 | 25.4 °C |
| 2025 | 25.9 °C |
| 2026 | 26.0 °C |
What this means for you: Since 1958, Darien's last spring frost has come about 1 day earlier per decade, on average. The frost-free season has grown by about 6 days per decade. Year-to-year swings are large, so keep using the safe date rather than the trend.
Source: daily records from Sapelo Is (NOAA GHCN-Daily). Years with too many missing days are left out.